My wife, 5 year old daughter, and I are about to purchase a lightly used (around 10k miles) 24R. We sold our ROO last fall because we wanted something more comfortable for longer trips. With that said, this is a really big step for us, and we have been saving for quite awhile. Growing up, my family camped a lot, and I'm blessed to have a wife and daughter that love camping as well.

So, as stated, this is a really BIG commitment and dropping that kind of money on a rig scares me...so I thought I would come to the forum to ask about reliability. I have already located a Mercedes Sprinter dealer/service center close to home that can service the unit yearly. The Mercedes part of the unit is still under warranty. Any advice or input others can share about their units is greatly appreciated, such as service cost, reliability, etc.

We have a 24s and I love it. Very few problems , amazingly easy to drive.
Reasonable gas mileage
Fits in a normal parking space
It's so nice to be set up in 5 minutes
We have had our unit for almost 3 years. Mostly local camping.
We also tow a jeep. Mercedes engine is fantastic.

My wife, 5 year old daughter, and I are about to purchase a lightly used (around 10k miles) 24R. We sold our ROO last fall because we wanted something more comfortable for longer trips. With that said, this is a really big step for us, and we have been saving for quite awhile. Growing up, my family camped a lot, and I'm blessed to have a wife and daughter that love camping as well.

So, as stated, this is a really BIG commitment and dropping that kind of money on a rig scares me...so I thought I would come to the forum to ask about reliability. I have already located a Mercedes Sprinter dealer/service center close to home that can service the unit yearly. The Mercedes part of the unit is still under warranty. Any advice or input others can share about their units is greatly appreciated, such as service cost, reliability, etc.

I have a 2014 24R on a 2013 chassis. Drives and performs great! Just returned home from a 4000 + trip and have to say that I did not really get tired on some fairly long driving legs across Texas and Ariz. I have over 20,000 miles on it now and I tow a car 4 wheels down. You don't even know the towed is back there. I do recommend the Hellwig sway bar even though you can do without it.

Good luck and happy camping!

Would recommend doing your own oil changes. Dealers charge way to much.

Thank you Mike; trips like that are right in line with what we plan to do. So I assume changing your own oil does not affect the warranty? Also, I've been reading up on the DEF light. How often do you add fluid, so the light doesn't come on, which would then require having MB reset it? Thanks again.

The def light comes on about 1000 miles before the reservoir is empty so there is no need to prevent it from coming on. If you wait a few hundred miles while the light is on, you can empty the large size DEF into the reservoir without overflow and carrying the not quite empty container around.

"So, as stated, this is a really BIG commitment and dropping that kind of money on a rig scares me..."

Honestly, when your little one starts school, your schedule really changes. So, that being said, you really need to use this thing to make it worth it IMO.

A couple things;
DIY oil changes can save you at least $150 bucks, but please read the forum posts here for guidance on proper oil, etc.
DEF's injection rate is 50:1 Fifty parts fuel to one part DEF. In other words look at it this way, about 2 1/2 oz DEF per gal of diesel +/-. There has been issues with the emission computer talking to the ECM ( main engine computer)which triggers the DEF light in some units. Some think MB engineers have gotten the software bugs worked out. But there have been posts here that might not fully agree and it seems the approach, MB's that is, has been to change parts to get the light to go out. That being said, overall the motor performs well and the issues have been sporatic. I would get the chassis VIN and ask your local MB dealer to give you an update to see if that one has had the software updates, along with any service work. Thats enough right now to chew on. Remember this; "life is a journey... not a guided tour"